Articles Posted inChildren

Researchers from Louisiana State University’s Health Science Center and Seattle Children’s Hospital were given a five-year federal grant by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study whether or not muscle power training exercises can improve the walking abilities of children with cerebral palsy (CP).

Is this exciting? It really is. Anything that can advance the ball for people with cerebral palsy is wildly exciting.

The recall affects the grape flavor, 1oz. bottles of Tylenol Oral Suspension, and has been made as a precaution after receiving a small number of complaints from consumers who reported difficulty using the Infants’ Tylenol SimpleMeasure dosing system. SimpleMeasure includes a dosing syringe, which a parent or caregiver inserts into a protective cover, or “flow restrictor,” at the top of the bottle to measure the proper dose. In some cases, the flow restrictor was pushed into the bottle when inserting the syringe.

No adverse events have been reported, and the risk of a serious adverse medical event is remote.

The FDA is advising that an additional concentration of liquid acetaminophen marketed for “infants” is now available. The new concentration, 160 mg/5 ml, will affect the amount of liquid given to an infant, and should be especially noted by consumers who re used to using the 80 mg /0.8 mL or 80 mg/mL concentrations of liquid acetaminophen.

The Over-the-Counter (OTC) Liquid acetaminophen is used to temporarily reduce fever and relieve minor aches and pains due to the common cold, flu, headache, minor sore throat, and toothache.

Gabriel Myers, age 7 and in the Florida foster care system, deliberately hanged and killed himself with a detachable shower hose.

My wife and I recently signed up for foster care here in Baltimore, and we have been taking care of our first foster care child (an infant) for the past 3 months. Foster care is the temporary placement of a child, typically while the parent gets his or her life together in order to better care for the child. As we went through the process, we met a lot of foster care parents, and learned that many children are placed in foster care because they are physically, emotionally or sexually abused; or because they are neglected. The older the children are when they are pulled away from their parents, the more likely it is that they have significant emotional and psychiatric injuries.

So, this is an issue I feel strongly about. Children taken away from a volatile situation need the best care possible, and need to be safe and loved. Recent reports from Florida show that many children who have had tumultuous lives are being put on psychotropic medication when they enter the foster care system. In fact, an astounding number of children in the Florida Department of Children and Families are on these drugs:

22% of children aged 6-12

33% of children aged 13-17

Tellingly, a fewer percentage of foster care children who live with relatives or family friends are taking psychotropics—about 12%. And, that number even feels high.